Yahoo Boosts Share Buyback by $5 Billion

Yahoo! Inc. boosted its share buyback plan by $5 billion, returning more cash to shareholders as Chief Executive Officer Marissa Mayer seeks to revive growth at the largest U.S. Internet portal.

Yahoo will also raise $1 billion in convertible debt funding maturing in 2018, the Sunnyvale, California-based company said in a statement Tuesday.

Mayer’s turnaround has focused on acquisitions of smaller technology companies that can add to the company’s talent pool or reach new sets of users. The buyback authorization is the latest since Yahoo agreed in July to repurchase 40 million of its shares Third Point LLC, run by activist-investor Daniel Loeb. Yahoo sold half its stake in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. last year and said it would return most of the $3.65 billion in proceeds to shareholders.

Yahoo has made $5.3 billion in buybacks since January 2012, including $1.7 billion in the third quarter, the company said on its earnings conference call on Oct. 15.